Summary

  • MPs question international trade and then women and equalities ministers

  • Urgent question on data roaming charges

  • MPs also debated motions on compensation relating to two lung conditions

  • After Andrea Leadsom outlined forthcoming business

  • Statement on review of legal aid and then one on Venezuela

  • House of Lords holds question session for ministers

  1. Call for free schools meals for all primary school pupilspublished at 15:18 Greenwich Mean Time 4 February 2019

    Education Questions

    House of Commons
    Parliament

    Diana JohnsonImage source, HoC

    Labour MP Diana Johnson asks what assessment the government has made of the effectiveness of the universal infant free school meals policy since 2014.

    Education Minister Nadhim Zahawi says the new eligibility criteria introduced last April means that more pupils will be entitled to free school meals from 2022, and that the universal infant free school meals policy is "important and working effectively".

    Shadow education minister Mike Kane asks if the government believes it was wrong to propose abolishing free school means in the last election, and calls for them to extend Labour's manifesto proposal for extending free school meals to all primary school pupils "if there is a snap election".

    Mr Zahawi says the government has extended eligibility criteria for free school meals three times since being in power, and that he remains "committed to the policy".

  2. RNLI capacity questionedpublished at 15:09 Greenwich Mean Time 4 February 2019

    Oral questions

    House of Lords
    Parliament

    Baroness BloomfieldImage source, HoL

    Conservative Baroness Bloomfield asks what the impact will be of the RNLI's decision to downgrade the all-weather lifeboats capacity in New Quay, Ceredigion.

    Transport Minister Baroness Sugg says the RNLI is "an independent organisation" and decides itself on how to deploy boats.

    Baroness Bloomfield says that this decision leaves a gap of many miles on the UK coastline where a rescue ship cannot be launched in stormy conditions.

    Baroness Sugg says that "there are faster boats at all RNLI stations" in the area and the charity does not believe that the changes will diminish capability.

  3. Increase in women taking STEM subjects laudedpublished at 15:09 Greenwich Mean Time 4 February 2019

    Education Questions

    House of Commons
    Parliament

    Chris SkidmoreImage source, HoC

    Conservative MP Luke Graham asks what recent steps the department has taken to increase the take-up of STEM subjects, external.

    Education Minister Chris Skidmore says the government is committed to encouraging young people into STEM education training, and is paying particular attention to ensuring more students take up computing.

    SNP MP Philippa Whitford asks what the government is doing to ensure more women take up STEM subjects, and calls for a strong relationship between women in core industries and schools to ensure a positive increase.

    Mr Skidmore says the number of women taking up STEM subjects has increased by 26% since 2010, and that the government is "looking at" industry advice.

  4. Theresa May to visit NI for Brexit speechpublished at 15:07 Greenwich Mean Time 4 February 2019

    The PM is expected to underline the UK's commitment to ensuring no hard border during Tuesday's visit.

    Read More
  5. How will the government make sure the NHS is well-staffed?published at 15:07 Greenwich Mean Time 4 February 2019

    Oral questions

    House of Lords
    Parliament

    Baroness WheelerImage source, HoL

    Labour's Baroness Wheeler asks how the government will ensure that there are enough NHS staff to deliver the NHS Long Term Plan.

    Government spokesperson Baroness Manzoor says that the health secretary is working with the NHS to bring forward a "detailed workforce" plan for the service.

    Baroness Wheeler says that one in 10 diagnostic posts are currently empty, and she asks whether the government has "any idea" of how the Long Term Plan will work during this period of high staff vacancies.

    Baroness Manzoor says that the NHS has more staff now than at any other time in its history, but she adds that the current level of vacancies are "unsustainable".

  6. Public Health England funding cuts questionedpublished at 14:54 Greenwich Mean Time 4 February 2019

    Oral questions

    House of Lords
    Parliament

    Baroness BarkerImage source, HoL

    Liberal Democrat Baroness Barker asks what assessment has been made of the decision to reduce the Public Health England grant for 2019/20 by £85m.

    Government spokesperson Baroness Manzoor says "despite funding pressures" councils are increasing the health of local communities.

    Baroness Barker says that local authority public health budgets have been cut by £700m since 2014, and she asks if there is an "urgent need to rethink this strategy" due to rises in sexual diseases.

    Baroness Manzoor says that local authorities have been "aware of these cuts for well over a year" and have been able to prepare. She adds that the budget of public health is not the only thing that influences the health of the UK.

  7. Warm welcome for new Tory peers...published at 14:52 Greenwich Mean Time 4 February 2019

    Conservative peer tweets

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  8. Lord Reay introduced to the Lordspublished at 14:52 Greenwich Mean Time 4 February 2019

    Introdution

    House of Lords
    Parliament

    Lord ReayImage source, HoL

    Lord Reay, winner of the Parliamentary hereditary peers by-election last week, has also just been introduced and sworn in. He'll be sitting on the Conservative benches.

  9. 'FE institutions need more money'published at 14:45 Greenwich Mean Time 4 February 2019

    Education Questions

    House of Commons
    Parliament

    Gordon MarsdenImage source, HoC

    Shadow education minister Gordon Marsden says the government is providing encouraging words but no action with regards to improving the further education sector.

    "FE institutions need more money," he says, and calls for the education secretary to announce to the Chancellor that increased FE funding in the spending review is "the top priority".

    Education Minister Anne Milton says it is good to hear people across the House talking about education, as "the last Labour government didn't talk about it very much".

  10. Baroness Blackwood introduced to Lordspublished at 14:41 Greenwich Mean Time 4 February 2019

    Introduction

    House of Lords
    Parliament

    Baroness BlackwoodImage source, HoL

    The Lords are introducing the new Conservative Peer, Baroness Blackwood of North Oxford.

    During her time in the Commons, she was a member of the Home Affairs Committee and later became chair of the Science and Technology Committee. She was an MP from 2010-2017, after Liberal Democrat Layla Moran won her seat in 2017.

    Baroness Blackwood has been brought in following the resignation of Lord O'Shaughnessy as a health minister, and it's widely expected that she will take up the post of minister in the Department for Health.

  11. 'Funding still leaves FE sector with challenges ahead'published at 14:40 Greenwich Mean Time 4 February 2019

    Education Questions

    House of Commons
    Parliament

    Ruth CadburyImage source, HoC

    Labour MP Ruth Cadbury opens today's questions to education ministers, asking what discussions have been had with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on funding priorities for post-16 education in the forthcoming spending review.

    Education Minister Anne Milton says the government is working closely with the Treasury to consider how effective current spending is on post-16 education.

    "There has been money going in, but I am aware that the base rate for post-16 education funding still leaves the FE sector with challenges ahead," she adds.

    Ms Cadbury says not enough is being invested in T-Levels and more practical further education qualifications, and that this should be a priority of the government who are "oblivious" to staff strikes across the FE sector.

    Ms Milton says that she "understands the challenges" faced by post-16 education institutions, and that £2bn has been put forward by the government towards apprenticeship training from 2020.

  12. Today in the Lordspublished at 14:15 Greenwich Mean Time 4 February 2019

    Coming up...

    House of Lords
    Parliament

    The Lords start at 2:30pm with an introduction to new peer and former Oxford MP Nicola Blackwood.

    There are oral questions on Brexit, Northern Ireland and grooming gangs. Then there's an urgent question on Venezuela.

    Finally, the Lords will finish their day considering changes to the Trade Bill at its committee stage.

  13. Today in the Commonspublished at 14:15 Greenwich Mean Time 4 February 2019

    House of Commons
    Parliament

    Our coverage of the Commons begins at 2.30pm with questions to the Education Secretary Damian Hinds and his ministers.

    The Speaker has granted two urgent questions today. The first, introduced by Labour MP Vernon Coaker, is on the Home Secretary Sajid Javid’s new policy of Knife Crime Prevention Orders which was unveiled last week.

    The home secretary says the ASBO-style orders will give police more power to impose curfews and send young people aged over 12 caught with knives on educational courses.

    The second urgent question of the day is from Labour MP Fabian Hamilton on the US withdrawal from nuclear treaties.

    Last week US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced that from 2 February the US is suspending its participation in the important Cold War-era disarmament agreement - the Intermediate Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty.

    Business Secretary Greg Clark will then deliver a statement on Nissan’s Sunderland plant after the company confirmed yesterday that its new model, the X-Trail, will be manufactured in Japan instead of Sunderland.

    Earlier this afternoon Business Minister Richard Harrington said a £60m support package for Nissan's Sunderland plant "still stands", despite the decision not to build its latest SUV in the UK.

    To close the afternoon, MPs will have a general debate on sport.

  14. What's going on this week?published at 13:52 Greenwich Mean Time 4 February 2019

    Welcome back to our coverage of what's on in Westminster this week.

    We'll be looking at debates and questions in the Commons and the Lords today. If you want to look ahead, read BBC parliamentary correspondent Mark D'Arcy's blog which outlines what's on in the Commons and the Lords.